3:05 PM -- Consumers love Wi-Fi. They love it more than coffee and even more than beer. Now that the carriers love Wi-Fi too, the technology has secured its future as a go-to for mobile Internet offload. (See Mobile Internet Offload Grabs the Limelight.)

On 3G networks, it's because the experience is superior, and on 4G networks, it'll be because it's cheaper than the wireless network.

Wi-Fi vendor Devicescape Software Inc. put out its annual survey Wednesday, reiterating consumers' love of Wi-Fi, and noted that 73 percent of consumers said they'd switch wireless operators if theirs instituted tiered pricing.

As with TV cord cutting, I think this is an empty threat. Instead, consumers will continue to migrate to Wi-Fi wherever it's available. Long Term Evolution (LTE) may be able to provide the speeds and latency consumers require, but Wi-Fi will keep their costs down. Engineer Steven Crowley aptly Tweeted on Wednesday, "I can see Wi-Fi someday being the primary access interface with wireless operators, with 4G as backup."

The two will be inextricably linked, and I think it'll be interesting to see what wireless operators come up with to track, monetize and manage what today is just data dumping.

— Sarah Reedy, Senior Reporter, Light Reading Mobile